Malaysian censors snip same-sex kisses from The Hours

BY Advocate.com Editors

March 07 2003 1:00 AM ET

The [Perth, Australia] Sunday Times reports that the Malaysian Film Censorship Board is snipping the same-sex kisses performed by Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, and Meryl Streep in the Oscar-nominated drama The Hours. Board chairman Shaari Mohamad Noor defended the board's action, saying, "We are just applying the guidelines that have been established. We try to minimize cuts and save every film, but censorship is a very subjective matter, so some people might not understand our reasons." The new movie Daredevil has been banned outright in Malaysia for "violent content" and because the film might encourage youngsters to "hero-worship someone with a devil-sounding name."